spring 2003 | early developments 1

 Spring 2003 | Volume 7, #1 Professional Development 

FPG

Child

Development

Institute

The University of North Carolina

at Chapel Hillearlydevelopments
news

High-quality, free or low-cost resources related to early childhood and 

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Using the “Search for Lists” tool, fi nd natural_resources and follow the directions for 

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The International Division of Early Childhood (DEC) of 

the Council for Exceptional Children presented its 

2002 DEC Service to the Field Award to Dr. Pamela 

Winton in ceremonies December 5 during the group’s 

annual meeting in San Diego. The award was presented 

for her “signifi cant contributions” and her “distinguished 

career as a researcher and leader in the area of familycentered practices related to both direct services and 

professional development.”
ISSN 1536-4739

Supervising Editors

Pam Winton, Virginia Buysse

Writers

John Manuel

Loyd Little

Designer

Gina Harrison

Photographer

Don Trull

Assistant Editor

Anna Mitchell

www.fpg.unc.edu

www.ncedl.org

Early Developments is published three times 

a year by the FPG Child Development Institute 

at The University of North Carolina at Chapel 

Hill. It is funded in part by UNC-Chapel Hill and 

in part by PR/Award Number R307A60004, 

administered by the offi ce of Educational 

Research and Improvement, National Institute 

on Early Childhood Development and Education, US Department of Education. Content 

of articles does not necessarily represent the 

position of the US Deparment of Education. 

Endorsements by the federal government 

should not be assumed.

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|ed|

early developments

Spring 2003 | Volume 7 #1

Director’s Notes

4

Research Central

5

Making It Real

Preparing Students to be Effective Practitioners

9

FPG Publications

12

Elevating the Educators

The Quest for Quality Begins with Effective Faculty

14

Teaching 4–8 Year Olds

18

NCEDL Publications

 15

contents photo: PhotoDisc
Director’s Notes by Don Bailey, Director

T

HE QUESTION ALWAYS

SURPRISES ME—“Is FPG a 

part of The University 

of North Carolina?” I guess 

some would say that being 

asked this question is a 

sign that the institute is 

so engaged in the world of 

practice and policy that it 

defies the “ivory tower” image 

of many universities. If that is 

the case, then perhaps we have 

accomplished something important! 

But the answer to the question is a 

resounding “YES!”

Organizationally, FPG is a “freestanding” institute at The 

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. By freestanding, 

I mean that FPG is not a part of just one school or department 

at the university. As director, I report to the Vice Chancellor 

for Research and Graduate Studies. This arrangement gives 

us enormous flexibility in what we do and provides a high 

degree of both autonomy and responsibility.

Why is our university connection so important? I 

can think of at least three reasons. First, it provides the 

opportunity to address issues from a multidisciplinary 

perspective. When you think about the challenges facing 

children and families today, it is clear that they do not 

fall neatly under one discipline’s responsibility. We are 

very fortunate to have investigators and fellows from 

many different schools, departments and other centers on 

campus. These include education, psychology (including 

developmental, clinical, school and neuropsychology), 

public health, nursing, pediatrics, anthropology, speech 

and hearing sciences, occupational therapy, audiology, 

biostatistics, social work, maternal and child health and 

psychiatry. Through these diverse perspectives we seek to 

integrate knowledge about children, families and systems of 

care so that we can better understand the big picture.

Second, a university expects its faculty to publish in the 

best and most scholarly journals. We want to be held to 

this standard, as high-quality research forms the basis for 

our outreach and policy work. We are 

proud of our scholarly publications, 

many of which are listed in each 

issue of Early Developments.

Although not all will be of interest 

to practitioners or policy makers, 

these publications provide the 

credibility for us to speak with 

authority on major issues of our 

time, and are necessary for continued 

success in securing prestigious federal 

funding from agencies such as the National 

Institutes of Health and the US Department 

of Education.

Third, by being a part of a university we have the privilege 

of working with bright and energetic students from a 

variety of disciplines. Our contribution to the university’s 

teaching mission is primarily through providing students 

the opportunity to participate in every phase of research 

and outreach endeavors, including design, implementation, 

analysis, publication and grant writing. Students who work 

at FPG leave with a hands-on understanding of the research 

process and hopefully will become the next generation 

of leaders who study young children’s development and 

learning and work to improve human services.

This issue of Early Developments highlights many of our 

activities at UNC, as well as the work we do to help other 

universities prepare professionals to work with young 

children and their families. By profiling a number of current 

and former students who have been affiliated with the 

institute, I hope you will have a better idea of the benefits 

and results of our university affiliation.

Chancellor James Moeser has set a high standard for the 

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill—to become the 

leading public university in the United States. FPG is proud 

to be a part of the nation’s oldest public university, and we 

intend to play a key role in helping UNC expand its national 

influence. If FPG succeeds in helping UNC accomplish this 

goal, maybe the day will come when I will no longer be 

asked whether or not FPG is a part of the university!
spring 2003 | early developments 5

STROLL THROUGH THE HALLS OF FPG and you will see a legacy of the 

Institute’s role in preparing researchers for early childhood careers. 

Behind almost every desk sits a researcher who once trained at FPG as a 

doctoral or post-doctoral student, a researcher mentoring a student, or a student 

conducting research under the tutelage of an FPG researcher.

FPG’s role in training researchers can be traced back to its establishment in 

the 1960s as an independent center within The University of North Carolina 

at Chapel Hill. While not able to enroll students or offer courses, FPG supports 

faculty who serve as chairs or members of doctoral and thesis committees, 

and enlists graduate students to work on various research projects. Thousands 

of students have done so over the years, attracted by the chance to work 

with expert faculty and funded projects on a variety of topics. Many of these 

students have gone on to work at FPG, where they have, in turn, 

mentored a new generation of student researchers. Others 

have moved to all parts of the country to serve as 

teachers, administrators and researchers.

Research

e

n

t

r

a

l
6 early developments | spring 2003 

This tradition of preparing 

researchers continues with a host of 

new grants and opportunities. One of 

the most recent is a grant from the US

Department of Education, Office of 

Special Educational Programs (OSEP) 

to train doctoral and post-doctoral 

students how to analyze the many 

national programs and data gathered 

about young children with disabilities.

“The country is in desperate 

need of people who know how 

to conduct large studies within a 

policy context,” says Gloria Harbin, 

principal investigator for the grant. 

“Policymakers are asking for evidence 

that the various programs they have 

funded are working, and we are 

having a hard time finding researchers 

capable of doing the studies. Because 

of the importance of these programs, 

the people who conduct these analyses 

will have an impact on shaping public 

policy for children with disabilities 

aged birth through 18 for the next five 

to ten years.”

Under the $1.6 million grant, FPG will 

train nine individuals in each of three 

years. Six of those chosen will have 

completed all doctoral coursework, and 

three will have already obtained a PhD. 

This will be an interdisciplinary group, 

including psychologists, sociologists, 

special education and public health 

researchers. Recipients will go through 

an eight-week “boot camp” at FPG to 

learn the methodological skills necessary 

to conduct and analyze studies.

After their training, students will 

conduct a 10-month apprenticeship at 

one of the large research organizations or 

universities that house one or other of the 

national data sets. Students will choose 

one of the studies and conduct a secondary 

level of analysis, selecting their own 

question to research. “Not only will this be 

important in their own training,” Harbin 

says, “they will be crafting and answering 

important questions that would otherwise 

have gone unanswered, because the 

Jan Blacher

Former student, 

nationally recognized researcher

Researcher, teacher, writer, film consultant, parent—Jan Blacher does it all. Since 

receiving her doctorate in Special Education and Developmental Psychology 

from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1979, Blacher has been trailblazing through the field with 

remarkable energy. Now a professor of education at the University of California at 

Riverside, Blacher has won more than a dozen honors and awards, received 32 

grants, served on 20 professional advisory boards, and authored or co-authored 

more than 50 journal articles. She is a consulting editor for Mental Retardation

and a columnist for Exceptional Children magazine.

Last year, Blacher was asked to consult on an independent film called 

Pumpkin starring Christina Ricci and based around a character with mental 

retardation. “Working with an actor was one of the most interesting activities 

I’ve ever done,” Blacher says. “The film got rave reviews and made it to the 

finals of the Sundance Film Festival.” Laughing, she adds, “It just goes to 

show that having solid research training has real world applications.”

Blacher is equally excited about her role as principal investigator of the UCRiverside Families Project, a 16-year longitudinal study of families who have 

children with severe mental handicaps. This study is the first to follow families 

after their children with developmental disabilities have been placed out of the 

home. What she has found is encouraging. “Placement out of the home is no 

longer placement out of the family,” Blacher says.

“Since the passage of the ADA and now IDEA, we’ve documented more 

contact between families and children placed in homes. The law brought 

more awareness and involvement with these children. It provided more 

family support and services that have allowed out-of-home placement, when 

necessary, to be done much later in life.”

Blacher says she feels “eternally indebted” to UNC and FPG for her training. 

“I attribute my grant-winning success to my training at both of those places,” 

Blacher says. 

“Jim Gallagher schooled us well in how to do this. And even though I wanted to 

focus on research, I learned about policy and clinical work as well. I had Rolls 

Royce internships while at UNC.”
spring 2003 | early developments 7

Karen Sparkman

Doctoral candidate in UNC-Chapel Hill’s School of Education

Studies (ECFL) program in UNC-Chapel 

Hill’s School of Education. She came 

to UNC from Atlanta, where she was in 

charge of statewide training and technical 

assistance for Part C (children aged birth 

to three years) of the Individuals with 

Disabilities Act. Doctoral training was 

made possible by tuition assistance and 

stipends through an Early Intervention 

Leadership Training grant awarded tp 

FPG from the Office of Special Education 

Programs (OSEP). Sparkman hopes to 

continue her research through a faculty 

appointment that blends early childhood/

special education teacher preparation 

and local/state policy development.

“In my work, I have noticed a real lack 

of [translating] research to practice,” 

Sparkman says. “We tend to do what 

we’re used to doing, not what the 

research suggests we should do. My goal 

is to work with practitioners, students, and 

researchers to facilitate the integration 

of research findings into our day-to-day 

practices, especially as it relates to 

inclusion efforts and policy development 

for young children and their families.”

Sparkman spends her days observing 

teacher’s interactions with students in 

child care centers, developmental day 

programs and Head Start classrooms 

throughout the central region of 

North Carolina. She will conduct both 

qualitative and quantitative analyses, 

using data obtained through interviews 

with teachers and observations of their 

interactions with children. Her findings 

will ultimately be incorporated into her 

doctoral thesis: “Promoting Social and 

Emotional Competence in Preschoolers 

with and without Disabilities: What is the 

Role of Teachers’ Educational Beliefs 

and Practices.”

“Working with researchers at FPG has been 

a great learning experience,” Sparkman 

says. “They allow me to work as a partner 

in their research efforts. My grant requires 

me to state how my research will translate 

into practice. The guidance and model 

provided by FPG researchers is making that 

connection clear.”

agency funded to do the study didn’t have the fiscal and human 

resources to do this level of analysis.” 

Harbin adds, “Our long-term goal is to encourage 

these students to go to work for one of these research 

organizations, or for a state agency, or to go back to a 

university to teach a new generation of students how to do 

these studies.”

The first year of the program, beginning in January 2003, 

is devoted to designing the training curriculum and the 

apprenticeship experience. The first cohort of students will 

begin work in January 2004.

Integrating disciplines to understand developmental disabilities 

Recent advances in behavioral science, neuroscience 

and molecular genetics have led to dramatic gains in our 

understanding of the pathogenesis of neurodevelopmental 

disorders such as autism and fragile X syndrome. In 

recognition of these advancements, the UNC Neurodevelopmental Disorders Research Center received a training grant 

from the National Institutes of Child Health and Human 

Development to develop researchers with expertise in 

both the biological basis and clinical manifestations of 

neurodevelopmental disorders. 

As a former 

special education 

teacher and school 

psychologist, 

Karen Sparkman 

has experienced 

first-hand the need 

to promote social 

and emotional 

competence 

among young 

children. 

Sparkman believes teachers’ educational 

beliefs and practices are key in helping 

young children achieve this competence. 

Her work with FPG researchers, funded 

through a student-initiated grant from the 

US Department of Education, is helping 

her understand which classroom practices 

teachers identify as being most conducive 

to helping young children regulate their 

behaviors and emotions and get along 

with peers.

A native of Greenville, SC, Sparkman 

is a third-year doctoral student in the 

Early Childhood Families and Literacy 
8 early developments | spring 2003 

The beauty of 

this fellowship 

is in having 

people from 

diverse 

backgrounds 

talking with 

each other.

To Learn More

Carolina Interdisciplinary Large-scale Policy 

Research Training

Principal Investigator:

Gloria Harbin

harbin@email.unc.edu

919-962-7371

Preparing Special Education and Related Service Academic 

and Research Leaders with an Emphasis on Communication 

and Social Relationships

Co-Directors:

Elizabeth Crais, Speech & Hearing

bcrais@med.unc.edu

919-966-9458

Harriet Boone, School of Education

haboone@email.unc.edu

919-962-9371

Fragile X Communication Project

Co-Directors:

Joanne Roberts

joanne_roberts@unc.edu

919-966-7164

Joseph Piven

jpiven@css.unc.edu

919-843-8641

“This broad-based and integrated perspective will enable 

researchers to better relate across disciplines and will 

maximize the potential for major research advances in 

understanding the pathogenesis and treatment of these 

disorders,” says Joanne Roberts, FPG researcher and codirector of the post doctoral research program with Joseph 

Piven, director of UNC Neurodevelopemental Disorders 

Research Center.

Currently, six post-doctoral students are funded by this 

grant, including developmental psychologists, geneticists 

and molecular and cell biologists. Program sponsors 

facilitate interaction among the students around different 

aspects of research in developmental disabilities. Several 

of the post-doctoral fellows are planning to visit the FPG

Child Development Institute to observe a child with Fragile 

X syndrome. This will give each of the students the chance 

to learn something different about the disease. One of the 

post-doctoral fellows, Elizabeth Hennon, a developmental 

psychologist, works at FPG on the Fragile X Communication 

Project. She plans to observe a geneticist conduct a 

Southern blot analysis (a type of analysis to determine if an 

individual has Fragile X or another type of genetic disorder).

“This will really help me to understand the genetics of 

Fragile X,” Hennon says. “Conversely, the biologist will be 

able to observe how a child with Fragile X behaves. The 

beauty of this fellowship is in having people from diverse 

backgrounds talking with each other.”

Hennon is also learning about grant writing from Roberts. 

“Beth will hopefully acquire the skills during this 

fellowship to write and get an NIH grant funded of her 

own,” Roberts says. 

“That will make her even more marketable.” 

 

FPG’s role in preparing PhDs 

FPG has a long history of preparing interdisciplinary 

researchers in early intervention and family support. These 

efforts have 

primarily been 

supported by 

federal grants 

from OSEP

through the 

UNC School 

of Education. 

The newest of 

these doctoral 

grants will allow 

several students 

in Speech and 

Hearing Services 

and in the School 

of Education 

at UNC-Chapel 

Hill to take 

courses together 

that focus on 

research in early 

intervention.

“There is a 

huge shortage 

of doctoral level 

faculty in the 

area of speech 

and hearing, and in early intervention,” says Betsy Crais, 

FPG fellow overseeing the project with Harriet Boone. Over 

the four semesters of the program, grant recipients will be 

mentored in research by faculty from FPG, the School of 

Education and Speech and Hearing Services. 

“Classes will be co-taught by faculty from these 

different disciplines, which will give the students multiple 

perspectives,” says Betsy Crais. Students will receive 

stipends to attend national meetings on early intervention, 

make presentations and meet peers. 
spring 2003 | early developments 9

Along with its role in preparing 

researchers, FPG also helps 

prepare practitioners in early 

education and intervention. 

This preparation has taken 

numerous forms from student 

teaching and internships in 

the FPG Child Care Program 

to participating in federally 

funded grant programs and 

other initiatives.

ONE CURRENT EXAMPLE is the Transatlantic 

Consortium on Early Childhood Intervention, a fi rstof-its-kind international program to train graduate 

students in a cross-cultural setting. Funded by the European 

Union and the US Department of Education, the consortium 

consists of three American universities—UNC-Chapel Hill, The 

University of Colorado and Vanderbilt University—together 

with Malardalen and Stockholm Universities in Sweden, 

Ludwig Maximilians University in Germany, Jyvaskyla 

University in Finland and Porto University in Portugal.

Through a series of intensive courses held both here 

and abroad, along with web-based interaction, graduate 

students will be exposed to different models of service 

delivery for children and families in varied cultural, 

ethnic and social environments. They also will have an 

opportunity for extended visits in participating countries.

FPG fellows Irene Nathan Zipper, project coordinator, in 

the School of Social Work and Rune Simeonsson, project 

co-director, in the School of Education, both at UNC-Chapel 

Hill, and Eva Bjorck-Akesson, project co-director, from 

Making It Real

Preparing Students to be Effective Practitioners
10 early developments | spring 2003 

Known for training researchers and 

teachers, FPG can count among 

its graduates a growing number of 

practitioners in the field of early childhood 

intervention. Ilean Hill is an early 

intervention and family support specialist 

for the Wake County (North Carolina) 

Department of Social Services. In that job, 

she provides child service coordination 

for the county, writes Individualized Family 

Service Plan (IFSPs) for children birth to three years of age, 

conducts developmental assessments, and provides special 

instruction for children. 

“I’m a direct service provider, but I also do supportive 

counseling for children and their families, as well as child 

service coordination,” Hill says. “I wear a lot of different hats that 

are not in my job description.”

Malardalen University are working together to direct and 

implement the project. “The consortium represents a 

wonderful opportunity for students to examine their own 

assumptions, to learn from each other, and to consider 

the implications for early childhood intervention in their 

own countries,” Zipper says. “There are lots of differences 

among these countries in terms of attitudes towards people 

with disabilities and in the way services are provided. We 

will be pairing American and European students together to 

stimulate the learning experience.”

After a year of planning, the consortium will offer its first 

intensive course in Sweden in June of 2003 focusing on 

understanding functioning and disability in early childhood, 

and intervention theories and models. This will be followed 

in September by a three-week course at UNC-Chapel Hill 

addressing families and early intervention and service 

systems and coordination. Additional courses will be held 

in 2004 at Vanderbilt and Porto Universities.

From a distance: Alternatives for working students

FPG has recently completed another project focused on 

preparing early childhood teachers within the context of 

community colleges and the Internet. Early childhood 

workers seeking to enhance their education through 

traditional college classes have been limited by a host of 

factors, including lack of release time during the work day; 

lack of access and transportation to college campuses, 

particularly in rural areas; and limited numbers of qualified 

college instructors. Although community colleges try to 

offer a variety of alternatives for working students, few 

have the resources, time and skills to develop and support 

high quality early childhood distance learning courses. 

Toward that end, FPG launched Project CONTACT to increase 

the state’s capacity to provide education options that meet 

the needs of a low resource population, which includes 

early childhood education distance learning courses. The 

project’s strength lies in the collaboration among key 

partners including the NC Community College System, the 

North Carolina Partnership for Children (Smart Start), the 

NC Division of Child Development, LEARN NC, Fayetteville 

Technical Community College, and local Smart Start 

partnerships, child care resource and referral agencies and 

community colleges. 

During 2001, Project CONTACT selected four North 

Carolina community colleges to deliver the pilot courses, 

working in conjunction with four local Smart Start 

programs. Instructors worked as a team to develop the 

courses, receiving considerable support and training from 

project staff in the development of online courses and 

the use of Internet technology. Fifty-five students were 

recruited for the spring semester of 2002. Project CONTACT

offered them support in terms of help in getting financial 

assistance, Internet access and computer equipment. The 

project also provided them with computer and Internet 

skills training and various resources, including a guide to 

distance learning.

While holding down her job with the county, Hill earned a 

master’s degree from the School of Education at UNC-Chapel 

Hill. Hill did not receive direct training at FPG, but was taught by 

several FPG researchers, including Pam Winton. 

As the only person of color in the Early Intervention and Family 

Support program at the time, Hill let it be known that she 

thought the school needed to recruit a more diverse student 

body and faculty to serve the increasingly diverse population 

of children with special needs. That, in part, prompted FPG to 

launch such programs as Walking the Walk aimed at increasing 

diversity among early childhood personnel and leaders.

“The population we work with grows more diverse every year,” 

Hill says. “I’m not just talking about African-Americans, but 

also Hispanics and Asians. And it’s not just racial diversity, it’s 

linguistic, as well. There is a need and an effort to hire more 

bilingual people here and in all the other agencies that serve 

young people.” 

Ilean Hill

Former student & early intervention and family support specialist 
spring 2003 | early developments 11

Students reported enjoying the fl exibility of distance learning, 

logging on to the courses at all times of the day and night. 

They also reported having developed strong professional and 

personal networks as a result of involvement in the course,” 

says project evaluator, Mary Ruth Coleman. CONTACT’s benefi ts 

are extending into the future: the North Carolina Community 

College System has integrated the fi ndings from CONTACT into 

their system-wide course development and faculty training 

components, and additional funding is allowing CONTACT to 

extend into more counties.

Preparation within FPG’s doors 

Perhaps the way in which FPG best prepares practitioners is 

by offering them a wide range of research and professional 

development activities in which to participate. Founded 

in 1966, the Institute’s mission includes research, 

demonstration and professional development, along with 

providing direct services for children and families. Each 

year, dozens of students from UNC-Chapel Hill participate in 

training programs at the child care center. Undergraduates 

majoring in education often do practicum placements at 

the center, observing interactions between teachers and 

children or how to intervene with children with special 

needs. Students from other disciplines, including nursing, 

occupational therapy, speech language pathology and 

physical therapy also come to the child care center to 

participate in these professional development opportunities. 

Instructors from these schools also invite FPG teachers to 

talk to their classes.

Many students participate in 

internships at the center, a 40-houra-week job that involves creating 

courses and leading class under 

the guidance of a licensed teacher. 

“Student-teaching experiences are 

incredibly valuable,” 

says P. J. McWilliam, former 

director of the child care center. 

“The experience students gain from 

working with an FPG teacher has more 

infl uence on their teaching style than 

any classroom training.

“It’s also a benefi t for our staff,” 

McWilliam adds. “They enjoy the 

opportunity to mentor students and it 

gives them an extra set of hands. It’s 

a genuine win-win situation.”

Looking at the “Big Picture”

In addition to these various efforts to support early 

childhood teachers-in-training, FPG is working on teacher 

preparation at the system, or “big picture,” level for 

prekindergarten. Nationally, the demand for quality 

prekindergarten programs is rising, yet there is a severe 

shortage of qualifi ed teachers to meet this demand. 

The National Research Council, in its Eager to Learn

report, recommends that prekindergarten teachers have a 

Bachelor’s degree in early childhood education. Yet a 2001 

national survey estimated that no more than 50 percent 

of teachers of three- and four-year-olds have a BA degree. 

As states serve more children in prekindergarten, they are 

struggling to hire enough qualifi ed teachers. 

To address this and other pressing prekindergarten issues, 

FPG and the Foundation for Child Development created 

the National Prekindergarten Center (NPC). Co-directed by 

Richard Clifford and Kelly Maxwell, NPC’s mission is to help 

local, state and federal leaders develop and implement highquality prekindergarten programs through research, policy 

analysis, technical assistance and communications. NPC

is focusing most of its efforts on the issues of professional 

development, fi nancing and governance.

In April 2002, NPC hosted a working symposium entitled 

Strategies for Preparing Highly Qualifi ed Prekindergarten 

Teachers. Approximately 30 professional development experts 

met to brainstorm preservice and inservice strategies for 

producing more qualifi ed pre-k teachers. As part of that 

meeting, participants developed a set 

of principles to guide the development 

of various professional development 

efforts. One principle, for example, 

recommends that teacher preparation be 

viewed as a key component of any pre-k 

program (rather than an add-on that can 

be cut in tight budget times). Another 

principle recommends that efforts 

should be made to ensure that the pre-k 

teacher workforce refl ects the diversity 

of children and families served. 

Through this variety of projects 

and strategies, FPG is playing an 

important role, not only in preparing 

practitioners through technology and 

other innovative methods, but also 

developing policies and guidelines 

for ensuring that early childhood 

programs include qualifi ed personnel 

as a critical component of global 

program quality. 

To Learn More

Transatlantic Consortium on 

Early Childhood Intervention

Rune Simeonsson, Project Co-director

rune_simeonsson@unc.edu

919-962-2512

Mary Ruth Coleman, Project Evaluator

mary_ruth-coleman@unc.edu

919-962-7375

National 

Prekindergarten 

Center

Richard Clifford & Kelly Maxwell, 

Principal Investigators

maxwell@mail.fpg.unc.edu

www.fpg.unc.edu/~npc
12 early developments | spring 2003 

fpg recent pub

Assessment of preschool children’s peer-related 

social competence. Brown, W. H., Odom, S. L., 

& Buysse, V. (2002). Assessment for Effective 

Intervention, 27(4), 61-71.

Delayed diagnosis of fragile X syndrome – United 

States, 1990-1999. Bailey, D. B., Skinner, D., 

Sparkman, K., Moore, C.A, Olney, R.S., & 

Crawford, D.C. (2002). MMRW, 51, 740-742.

Disability, health coverage and welfare reform.

Skinner, D., Slattery, E., Lachicotte, W., Cherlin, 

A., & Burton, L. (2003). Washington, DC: 

The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the 

Uninsured.

Early childhood teachers need support to include 

children with disabilities. Catlett, C., & Wittmer, 

D. (2002, September). Early Childhood Report, 

13(9), 10.

Early intervention consultants in the classroom: 

Simple steps for building strong collaboration.

Wesley, P. (2002). Young Children, 57(4), 30-34.

Educators need resources, training to serve 

all learners. Catlett, C., & Wittmer, D. (2002, 

October). Early Childhood Report, 13(10), 4.

Home stretch: Activities for parents and 

preschoolers. Hardin, B., & Wesley, P. W. (2002). 

Lewisville, NC: Kaplan Press.

Implementing inclusive early childhood education. 

Soodak, L., Erwin, E., Winton, P., Brotherson, 

M., Turnbull, A., Hanson, M., & Brault, L. (2002). 

Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 

22(2), 91-102.

Infants and toddlers with visual impairments: 

Suggestions for early interventionists. Hatton, D., 

McWilliam, R., & Winton, P. (2002). ERIC Digest:

ERIC Clearinghouse on Disabilities and Gifted 

Education.

Oral language and reading abilities of first grade 

Peruvian children: Associations with child and 

family factors. Castro, D. C., Lubker, B. B., Bryant, 

D. M., & Skinner, M. (2002). International Journal 

of Behavioral Development, 26(4), 334-344.

Preparing twice exceptional students for adult 

lives: A critical need. Huan, B., & Coleman, M.R. 

(2002). Understanding Our Gifted, 17-19.

Resources within reason: Children who are blind or 

visually impaired. Hatton, D., Catlett, C., Winton, 

P., & Mitchell, A. (2002). Young Exceptional 

Children, 5(4), 28.

Resources within reason: Insights and lessons 

from families of children with disabilities. Catlett, 

C., Winton, P., & Parrish, R. (2002). Young 

Exceptional Children, 5(2), 28.

12 early developments | spring 2003 
spring 2003 | early developments 13

lications

Setting effects on friendship formation among 

young children with and without disabilities.

Buysse, V., Goldman, B. D., & Skinner, M. L. 

(2002). Exceptional Children, 68(4), 503-517.

A statewide profile of early intervention services 

using the Part C data system. Buysse, V., Bernier, 

K., & McWilliam, R. A. (2002). Journal of Early 

Intervention, 25(1), 15-26.

Thank you for being a friend: Fostering friendships 

for children with autism spectrum disorder in 

inclusive environments. Danko, C. D., & Buysse, V. 

(2002). Young Exceptional Children, 6(1), 2-9.

The use of public health databases to estimate the 

risk for special education placement. Redden, S., 

Scandlin, D., Roth, M., Devine, J., & Buescher, 

P. (2002). Raleigh, NC: State Center for Health 

Statistics.

spring 2003 | early developments 13

f

or more information 

about FPG publications, 

see the FPG web site at

www.fpg.unc.edu

or contact the 

FPG Publications Office 

at 919•966•4221 or 

pubs@mail.fpg.unc.edu
One of these projects, Walking the Walk, seeks to address the 

nationwide shortage of a culturally and linguistically diverse pool 

of early childhood teachers. Experts predict that by the year 2005, 

children and adolescents of color will make up as much as 40 percent of the US

youth population. Most of the teachers, specialists and administrators in this 

fi eld, however, are white and female.

Walking the Walk has developed a model to help produce well-qualifi ed and 

diverse early childhood personnel and leaders in fi ve North Carolina communities: 

Winston-Salem, Greensboro, Chapel Hill-Chatham County, Durham and Raleigh. A 

sixth team is working to promote diversity at a statewide level.

Project efforts target improvements in the recruitment and support of culturally 

and linguistically diverse college students and better preparation for all students 

to work with a diverse group of families, children and colleagues. 

Walking the Walk began in each community with a stakeholder meeting to 

identify priorities for change. The project also sponsored a three-day institute 

to help community teams discover new methods, models and materials related 

to diversity. Ongoing support and follow-up from project staff has assured that 

these efforts designed to bring change to the community stay on track. 

As a result of these efforts, historically black universities and their college 

and university counterparts in Raleigh and Greensboro are now sharing courses 

and practical experiences in early childhood education and early intervention. 

Community organizations are fi nding new opportunities to have input into 

what students learn, where they learn and from whom. And clear evidence is 

emerging that faculty members have discovered new ways to bring diversity into 

their teaching.

As an interdisciplinary institute 

within UNC-Chapel Hill, FPG has 

established close relationships 

with the various schools 

and departments involved in 

promoting the development 

and well-being of young 

children and families. FPG 

provides UNC faculty members 

with an “interdisciplinary 

home” for conducting research 

and collaborative planning and 

teaching. The institute regularly 

hosts special conferences 

and training events that further 

the knowledge and skills of 

faculty not just at UNC, but 

also at other universities and 

institutions across the state 

and the nation.

The Quest for Quality 

Begins with 

Effective Faculty

14 early developments | spring 2003

Elevating the 

Educators

photo: courtesy of Walking the Walk Project

photo: Pat Wesley 
Dan Haggard

FPG project participant & 

NM state administrator

Dan Haggard’s passion is promoting professional 

development for all those who work with young 

children. As Director of the New Mexico Early 

Childhood Development Initiative, his challenge 

has been to develop a system where people 

who work with young children—early interventionists, special 

education teachers, Head Start workers and child care 

workers—can receive training to improve their competencies 

without leaving their jobs.

“We have a career lattice with levels of licensure and 

education,” Haggard says. “For the past 15 years, we’ve 

worked to develop a system where people can flow through 

while they’re working. This must be a non-traditional program, 

so we’re always looking for ideas from experts in the field.”

Haggard’s program received a big boost when he and a team of 

professionals from New Mexico participated in successive training 

programs sponsored by FPG in 1996 and 1999. With the help of 

FPG investigators Pam Winton and Camille Catlett, Haggard’s team 

developed a state action plan to ensure that educational assistants 

in any of the child centered programs are represented in the career 

lattice and professional development system. They implemented 

that plan upon returning to New Mexico.

“FPG’s retreat was extremely valuable,” Haggard says. “We met 

with teams from other states to learn how they handled similar 

issues and we received training from experts in the field.”

Back in New Mexico, Haggard is seeking to initiate a teach 

and wages scholarship similar to North Carolina’s, a universal 

course of study at the associate degree and bachelor’s level, a 

credit for prior learning system, and a statewide on-line training 

program.

“There’s plenty to do in the professional development field,” 

Haggard says.

He continues his involvement with FPG as a presenter at the 

Natural Allies institute.

“It’s slow work to grow relationships among new 

partners, but the potential for what they can accomplish 

together is enormous,” says Camille Catlett, who co-directs 

the project with Pam Winton.

While Walking the Walk is focusing on North Carolina 

communities, strategies and products should be usable 

elsewhere. The project web site (www.fpg.unc.edu/

~walkingthewalk) offers a variety of examples 

and resources, including a downloadable diversity guide 

(www.fpg.unc.edu/~walkingthewalk/pdfs/RG10-

DWTW.pdf).

Nationwide, early childhood and early intervention 

partners, in concert with families, are encouraging 

opportunities for child care centers, gymborees and other 

community programs to include children with special 

needs. Progress is hindered, however, because many early 

childhood teachers and administrators were not trained to 

support the inclusion of these children. Catlett and Winton 

also co-direct Natural Allies, an FPG project that focuses on 

better preparing students at community colleges to work 

with young children with special needs. 

Community colleges are a natural training ground for the 

kinds of personnel who work in these natural community 

environments. FPG believes that the training can be greatly 

improved by bringing together “natural allies”—early 

intervention providers, state agencies, family members 

of young children with special needs and disability 

organizations—to craft collaborative teaching experiences that 

enhance students’ preparation to work with all young children.

Eight states are involved in the project: one cohort 

consisting of Iowa, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and Texas; 

and a second cohort consisting Idaho, Illinois, Nebraska 

and North Dakota. These states have engaged in a planning 

process to identify priorities for enhancing early childhood 

teacher preparation programs at community colleges. In the 

fall of 2002, 62 representatives from the states in Cohort 

1 attended an institute in Flat Rock, NC, to continue the 

planning process and build new skills.

spring 2003 | early developments 15

photo: courtesy of Dan Haggard
16 early developments | spring 2003 

As a result of these efforts, community college faculty are 

making changes in what they are teaching and with whom. 

For example, a faculty member at a Pennsylvania community 

college has used parents and early interventionists to talk 

to her students about inclusion and children with special 

needs. Several communities in Pennsylvania are working to 

include children with special needs in child care programs so 

that college students will be able to see inclusion working. 

Oklahoma, Iowa and Pennsylvania will be sponsoring 

statewide conferences to help a broader group of early 

childhood faculty members discover resources and connect 

with early intervention partners.

“This project is creating ‘blind dates’ for early childhood 

and early intervention colleagues who have a lot in 

common and would benefit from each other if they got a 

chance to work together,” Catlett says. “What we’re finding 

is that these partners have a lot to offer each other. In fact, 

they can greatly enhance each other’s work.”

The Natural Allies web site 

(www.fpg.unc.edu/~scpp/nat_allies) contains 

additional information and downloadable products 

(see www.fpg.unc.edu/~scpp/pages/products.cfm).

One group of young children for whom there is a particular 

lack of qualified teachers consists of those with visual 

impairments. Researchers estimate there are approximately 

20,000 children with visual impairments in the United 

States in the birth-to-five age range. In 2000, US colleges 

and universities turned out only 273 teachers of the visually 

impaired, and most of these were hired to provide services 

to children between the ages of 5 and 21 years.

To help close that gap, FPG launched The Early 

Intervention Training Center for Infants and Toddlers with 

Visual Impairments. There are a relatively small number 

of colleges and universities across the nation that house 

professional development programs offering a visual 

impairment specialization. The center is focusing on 

developing resources to help faculty in those institutions 

better prepare students to work specifically with infants and 

toddlers with visual impairments.

Under the direction of Deborah Hatton, the project has 

developed a series of multimedia, interactive content 

modules geared toward a university audience. 

 

Susan Simon

FPG project participant & community college faculty in Iowa 

Call her the champion of the community 

colleges. Susan Simon believes there 

is no more important institution in the 

training of professionals to work with 

people with disabilities and their families. 

As a faculty member at Kirkwood 

 Community College in Cedar Rapids, 

IA, Simon coordinates two programs. The first introduces and 

prepares students to work in varied careers aiding people with 

disabilities. The second, a pre-social work program, prepares 

students for more broad-based work on behalf of the needy in 

settings such as mental health departments, crisis intervention 

centers, youth shelters and group homes.

“Community colleges are critical because of how accessible 

they are to our students,” Simon says. “We offer classes faceto-face both in the city and in our county centers. Financially, 

our cost is much less than a college or university. Many of our 

students have families and jobs and can only come to evening 

classes. And our culture is approachable to those who come 

from families who never went to college.”

Simon was part of the original Iowa SCRIPT (Supporting Change and 

Reform in Interprofessional Preservice Training) team that received 

training through one of FPG’s faculty development projects. 

“That was the best training I’ve ever received,” Simon says. “I 

came as part of an interdisciplinary team from all parts of Iowa. 

We developed an Iowa plan at the retreat, set some realistic 

photo: courtesy of Susan Simon
spring 2003 | early developments 17

To Learn More

Principal Investigators

Camille Catlett

camille@unc.edu

919-966-6635

Pam Winton

pam_winton@unc.edu

919-966-7180

www.fpg.unc.edu/~walkingthewalk/

www.fpg.unc.edu/~scpp/nat_allies/

Another venture through which FPG is supporting faculty is the CMI Outreach 

Project headed by P. J. McWilliam. The Case Method of Instruction (CMI) is a 

teaching methodology used to facilitate self-reflection and the decision making 

skills needed for successfully applying theory to practice. In CMI, students are 

presented with narrative descriptions of real life situations (i.e., case stories) 

that professionals in their chosen profession encounter in their daily work with 

children, families and other professionals. A skilled instructor guides learners 

through an analysis of each situation and the development of a reasonable 

solution to the problem presented in the case story.

Working with Patricia Snyder of the Louisiana State University Health Sciences 

Center on a series of projects funded by the US Department of Education 

(OSEP), McWilliam developed a collection of case stories and related training 

materials specific to early intervention that is now available to instructors 

(www.cmiproject.net). McWilliam and Snyder are focusing their current efforts 

on spreading the word about CMI and providing instructors with the skills to 

incorporate CMI into their own training of students and clinicians. They have 

developed a three-day CMI seminar with follow-up activities and have now 

conducted these training sessions with instructors in early childhood, early 

childhood special education and related disciplines in six states (Louisiana, 

Iowa, Kentucky, Georgia, Delaware and Wisconsin). 

goals, then came back and implemented it. We continue to 

meet several times a year. We’ve developed training materials 

and hold conferences.”

On a more personal level, Simon took what she learned at 

the retreat and implemented it as part of her teaching at the 

community college. “The single greatest message I took away 

from the FPG training was the importance of including families in 

any intervention,” she says. “I always have my students interact 

with the families of individuals they are trying to serve. I bring 

family members into class to share their experiences with the 

students. Families tell us what we should teach.”

Simon continues her involvement with FPG as a member of 

Iowa’s Natural Allies team.

The Early Intervention Training Center for Infants and 

Toddlers with Visual Impairments

Principal Investigator

Deborah Hatton

EITC@unc.edu

866-842-2237 (toll-free)

www.fpg.unc.edu/~edin/

Principal Investigator 

P.J. McWilliam, Ph.D.

919-966-5098

pj_mcwilliam@unc.edu

www.cmiproject.net
18 early developments | spring 2003 

ncedl

news New 

Teacher Resource

Teaching 4- to 8-year-olds:

Literacy, Math, Multiculturalism and 

Classroom Community

Edited by Carollee Howes, 

Professor and Division Head of 

Psychological Studies in Education 

University of California—Los Angeles. 

Baltimore, MD: Brookes Publishing Co. 

ISBN 1-55766-597-4

Ultimately it’s not the program that affects the child, but the 

child’s experiences within the program

Teaching 4- to 8-year-olds is part of series of books edited 

by FPG Director Don Bailey in conjunction with NCEDL. 

In his forward, Bailey says, “This book makes an 

important contribution to a national discussion on 

programs and practices by focusing on elements of 

prekindergarten and early elementary programs that must 

be considered in the development and refi nement of 

program models.”

The authors argue for 

early childhood programs 

that emphasize teaching 

and learning the context 

of classrooms that are 

organized as social 

community, with a heavy 

focus on the socialemotional relationships 

between children and 

adults in these classrooms. 

This perspective suggests 

that early childhood 

programs can and should 

teach children, but that 

teaching can occur only 

in an environment that 

is nurturing, warm, and 

positive for children.

Teaching 4- to 8-year-olds

was inspired by a NCEDL conference attended by 200 teachers, 

university and community college faculty, and nationally 

known researchers.

Structure of book

With Teaching 4- to 8-year-olds, early childhood educators will 

tune in to how their students think and learn—and they’ll 

get sound research-based information and developmentally 

appropriate teaching practices in four critical areas:

Literacy—including promoting enthusiasm for reaching, 

developing phonological awareness, and improving 

reading comprehension

Mathematics—including creating data displays, looking 

for patterns, drawing on everyday experiences, and 

working math into classroom conversations

Multiculturalism—including accepting differences, 

discouraging stereotypes, and development an 

awareness of diverse cultures and family structures

Classroom community—including making friends, 

resolving confl icts, and strengthening student-teacher 

relationships

For each topic, readers get a theory chapter that explains 

research in everyday language and illustrates the concepts 

through lively examples, and a practice chapter that 

translates the research into real-world tips and strategies. 

Teachers will appreciate the concise, to-the-point advice 

on key issues such as teaching English-language learners, 

assessing skills, enhancing school readiness and giving all 

children a voice in the classroom. 

Chapter authors include Jean Baker, Laura Dilly, Carol 

Lacey, Sharon Ritchie, Linda Espinosa, Susan Burns, Jolena 

James-Szanton, 

Megan Franke, 

Elham Kazemi, 

Aisa Ray, Peter 

Hoffman-Kipp and 

Carollee Howes.  
spring 2003 | early developments 19

ncedlpublications

African American males in kindergarten. Barbarin, 

O. (2002). In J. U. Gordon, (Ed.), The African 

American male in American life and thought 

(pp. 1–12). New York: Nova Science Publishers.

Culture and ethnicity in social, emotional and 

academic development. Barbarin, O. (2002). The 

Kauffman Early Education Exchange, 1, 45–61.

Development of academic skills from preschool 

through second grade: Family and classroom 

predictors of developmental trajectories. Burchinal, 

M.R., Peisner-Feinberg, E., Pianta, R., & Howes, 

C. (2002). Journal of School Pscyhology, 40, 

415–436.

Do regulable features of child-care homes affect 

children’s development? Clarke-Stewart, K.A., 

Vandell, D.L., Burchinal, M, O’Brien, M., & 

McCartney, K. (2002). Early Childhood Research 

Quarterly, 17, 52-86.

Early behavioral attributes and teachers’ sensitivity 

as predictors of competent behavior in the 

kindergarten classroom. Rimm-Kaufman, S. E., 

Early, D. M., Cox, M. J., Saluja, G., Pianta, R. 

C., Bradley, R. H., & Payne, C. (2002). Applied 

Developmental Psychology, 166, 1–20.

Maternal sensitivity and child wariness in the 

transition to kindergarten. Early, D. M., RimmKaufman, S. E., Cox, M. J., Saluja, G., Pianta, 

R. C., Bradley, R. H., & Payne, C. C. (2002). 

Parenting: Science and Practice, 2(4), 355–377.

Structural predictors of child care quality in child 

care homes. Burchinal, M.R., Howes, C., & Kontos, 

S. (2002). Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 

17, 87–105.

spring 2003 | early developments 19
ed

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Chapel Hill, NC

ISSN 1536-4739

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